Fabric feeder mechanism for sewing machine



July 9, 1963 L. BONO 3,096,737

FABRIC FEEDER MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINE Filed Jan 19, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 b e I 3" x 58 F 9 3 5131930 4 29 34 0 q l gn m rm I I 11 -50 s7 E 1 3 34 23 J! ":T b V. A o "2 o ,2 21. 2, ::L-l Jr 16 20 17 25 22 45 44 FIG.1

u I. Bone m sww wmwb Aflmew July 9, 1963 L. BONO FABRIC FEEDER MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINE Filed Jan. 19, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 9, 1963 L. BONO 3,096,737

FABRIC FEEDER MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINE Filed Jan. 19, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent 3,096,737 FABRIC FEEDER MECHANISM FER SEWING MACHINE Luigi Bono, Pavia, Italy, assignor to Necchi Societa per Azioni, Pavia, Italy Filed Jan. 19, 1961, Ser. No. 83,832 Claims priority, application Italy May 14, 1960 Claims. (Cl. 112-204) This invention resides in the mechanism of a sewing machine for moving the material past the needle.

The invention has for its principal object the movement of the material in any direction and to any extent.

As another object in cooperation with lateral displacement of the needle, the movement of the material may vary in direction and extent so vthat the movement of the fabric may contribute to the production of designs of a particularly decorative nature.

A further object is the provision of control means to determine the extent of these movements, the control means being manually set-table or actuated 'by program members operated by the machine driving mechanism to determine a set pattern of control, or responsive to a conjoint operation of both.

FIGURE 1 shows a sewing machine, partially in section, so as to show the device.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the device, seen along the line II-II of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view, on a different scale, of the needle plate of the machine.

FIGURE 4 is a detail view of a part of the mechanism of FIGURE '2.

FIGURE 4a is a detail view of the adjusting control means to vary the amplitude of the lateral movement.

FIGURE 5 is a view along the line VV of FIG- URE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a schematic showing of the possible movements of the feeder.

FIGURE 7 is a detail view of another part of the mechanism of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 8 is a view along the line VIIIVIII of FIGURE 7.

FIGURE 9 is a cross section along the line lXIX of FIGURE 8.

FIGURES 10, 11 and 12 show a few examples of sewing designs which can be produced by this machine.

As shown in the drawings, the sewing machine is constructed with the arm '1 in which rotates the driving shaft 2 operating mechanism to reciprocate needle 3 in a known manner. Mechanism may also provide lateral movement of the needle in opposite directions :as indicated by the double arrow X in FIGURE 1. This mechanism is Well known in zigzag sewing machines, one example being shown in applicants Patent No. 2,905,119.

On the base 4 of the sewing machine below the needle, there is fastened the needle plate 5 having a slot 6 (FIG. 3) provided for passage of the needle and elongated laterally to allow lateral movement. Slots 7 in the plate 5 receive rows of teeth 8 of the feeder 9 with clearance for necessary movements both from front to rear in the path of advance of the material and laterally of said path. The feeder 9 is mounted on movable support 11 by screws 10. This support 11 at its rear end is fastened to the horizontal shaft 13 by pin 18 and at its front end is fixed to vertically extending plate 12 by screws 14. The plate 12 at its lower end is formed with a flange supported on cam 16 fixed to shaft 17, which on each revolution raises and lowers the support 11 and feeder 9 so the rows of teeth 8 pro trude through the slots during feeding movement. Shaft 17 is operatively connected to shaft 2 by a belt 0 disposed on pulleys a, b fixedly mounted on shafts 2 and 17 respectively.

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The shaft 13 is journaled in the upper ends of the two arms 19 of lever 20, the lower end of which is fixed to one end of shaft 21. The other end of shaft 21 is fixed to a lever 22 which is pivotally connected intermediate the ends of link 23 by a pin 24. This link 23 at its forward end is connected to connecting rod 25 actuated by eccentric 26 fixed on the shaft '17. The rear end of link 23 is pivotal-1y connected to block 27 slidable in a channel in block 28 fixed to shaft 29. Angular adjustment of shaft 29 may be made as shown in FIG. 4a by an arm d fastened to shaft 29 connected to a rod 2, which is connected to another lever j which under the action of a spring g presses against the surface of cam h. A knob i disposed outside of arm 1 and is operatively connected to cam h. By rotating knob i, one varies. the angular position of the arm d and therefore the block 28 around the axis of shaft 29. The knob i and .cam h can be replaced in a known manner by earn means, operatively connected to shaft 2 and adapted automatically to control the variation in angular position of the block 28. Another example of means for varying the angular position of block 28 is illustrated in FIG. 18 of applicants patent application Ser. No. 13,587, filed March 8, 1960 now Patent No. 3,081,724. a

The feeder 9 is moved to feed the material by operation of crank 25 through the link 23, lever 22, shaft 21 and lever 20. The extent and direction of the feed may be adjusted by setting block 28 through adjustment of shaft 29 as described above. This movement of the feeder is indicated by the double arrow y in FIGS. 2 and 6.

The feeding movements are synchronized with the raising and lowering movements of the feeder by operation of the cam 16 and eccentric 26 on shaft 17, as is diagrammatically illustrated in FIG. 6. The first phase of movement is the vertical lifting movement at a to cause the teeth to protrude through the plate 5, next a longitudinal displacement b for feeding the material, which is adjustable in amplitude and direction, then a vertical lowering phase c and finally a longitudinal phase d for return to initial position.

The present invention concerns the provision of lateral movements of the support 11 and feeder 9 in the direction of arrow x, in addition to the longitudinal move ments. The shaft 13 is mounted for sliding movement in its bearings in lever 20 and, together with support 9 and feeder 12, can move laterally to a limited extent as may be seen in FIG. 4. On one end of shaft 13 is mounted a block 30 having a groove 31 in which is slidable a stud 3 2 fixed to lever 33', and one end of lever 33 is pivoted on a fixed pin 35 and the other is connected to lever 34 by a pin 36. Accordingly longitudinal move ment of link 34 moves lever 33 to shift the shaft 13 and feeder 9.

The link 34 is moved in phase with the longitudinal and vertical movements of feeder 9 by mechanism operated by shaft 17. For this purpose, the link 34 has a block 37 pivoted in a transverse opening as shown in FIG. 9'. A set screw 38 secures a transverse rod 39 passing through openings in the block and link, with sufficient clearance in the link to allow pivotal movement. The link at this point is embraced by arms 40 and 41 of the rocker member 42, the. rod 39 being slidable through openings. in said arms. The rocker 42 is pivoted to the frame 4 by a pin 46, and the link 34 has such clearance between the arms 40, 41 that one block with the link may slide from one side of the axis of pivot 46 through a coaxial position to the other side. The rocker 42 has a spring 43 connected to one arm tending to rotate it counterclockwise, as seen in FIG. 7, while the other arm carries stud 44 engaging a cam 45 on shaft 17 so that rotation of said shaft oscillates rocker 42 against tension of spring 43.

The link 34 may be adjusted relative to rocker 42 to position block 37 relative to the axis of pivot 46 by a lever 49 carrying pin 48 engaging in slot 47 in the end of link 34. It will be obvious that if the block 37 is coaxial with pin 46, oscillation of rocker 42 will not affect the link while positioning the block out of the pivotal axis will produce movement of link 34 and lateral shifting of feeder 9 variable in phase and extent in accord with its position.

The lever 49 pivoted on the machine by pin 50' is settable for this purpose by a manually set cam 51 on shaft 52 having a setting knob 53. Lever 49 is maintained in contact with the cam by spring 54.

In addition, the lever 49 may also be adjusted by a cam 59 driven by the driving mechanism and engaging a pin 60 on an arm of lever 49. The means for rotating cam 59 may be, for example, those described in applicants patent application Ser. No. 13,285, filed March 7, 1960 now Patent No. 3,064,368. Accordingly, to drive cam 59, a shaft 55 has a driving connection at one end at 56 with the drive shaft 2 and at the opposite end through a known driving mechanism mounted on support 58 with cam 59. A slidable member 57 enables the removal and replacement of cam 59. This cam 59 acts as a program device to determine the pattern of lateral movements of the feeder. With such a program device, any selected pattern may be provided to control lateral movements of the feeder 9 either in combination with the manually set cam 51 or independently thereof. Thus, if cam 51 is set with its minor axis in engagement with lever 49, it will have no effect on control by cam 59, while if a point on its periphery having a longer axis is engaged by lever 49, it may limit the effect of cam 59. When block 31 is not coaxial with pivot 46 the support 9 is subjected to a lateral displacement e in one sense, in the direction of arrow x during the longitudinal displacement b, and is subjected to a lateral displacement f during the longitudinal displacement d, so that the trajectory of said support 9 may take place in any direction z (FIG. 6).

FIGS. 10, 11 and 12 show various designs of stitching. FIGS. a, 11a and 12a show examples of how sewing may be made with a laterally movable needle either in a straight line as in FIG. 10a or in a zigzag manner as in FIGS. 11a and 12a. The present machine may sew in the same manner when the block 37 is coaxial with pivot 46. If, however, the block 37 is positioned laterally of the axis of pivot 46, these designs are modified as shown in other figures. FIGS. 10c and 11c and FIGS. 10d and 11d differ due to the different transmission ratio between shaft 2 and the cams of the machine that control the movements of the support. FIG. 12d shows a variation of the sewing pattern of FIG. 12c and is obtained by limiting the effect of cam 59 by means of button 53.

I claim:

1. In a sewing machine of the type including a frame supporting driving means and a bed plate carrying a slotted needle plate, a reciprocating needle driven by said means, a fabric feeder having teeth rows movable in the slotted needle plate, and two operating mechanisms connecting said fabric feeder to the driving means of the machine, -a first of said operating mechanisms being of a construction to displace the feeder along a longitudinal trajectory which is substantially rectangular and consisting of a raising phase above the needle plate, of a displacement active phase in one direction, of a sinking phase beneath the needle plate and of a passive displacement phase in opposite sense to the previous one, a second of said operating mechanisms being of a construction to effectuate a lateral displacement of the feeder in one direction at the same time as said active displacement and another and opposite lateral displacement in the opposite direction during the passive displacement, so that the feeder returns to its starting position to repeat the same trajectories, the combination of said operating mechanisms providing for the feeding of fabric in any pre-fixed direction along the bed plate as a consequence of the simultaneous lateral and longitudinal movements, independent control means connected to said operating mechanisms in order to vary the amplitude from zero to a maximum as well as the direction of each one of the lateral and longitudinal displacements of the feeder from a center position.

2. A sewing machine in accordance with claim 1, in

which the second operating mechanism includes a rocker pivotally connected to the frame of the machine and operatively connected to the driving means of the machine, and a set of levers connected at one end with said rocker and at the other end with the feeder making the feeder subjected to lateral displacements timed with the longitudinal displacements of the feeder, and sliding and moving parts between said feeder and said levers to allow said lateral displacements of the feeder in a way that the feeder remains connected with the first operating mechanism in order to receive from the first operating mechanism the necessary motion for longitudinal displacements.

' 3. A sewing machine in accordance with claim 2, in which the end of the lever connected to said rocker is movable through a cam along the rocker to regulate the width of the rocker oscillations and consequently the extent of the lateral shifting of the feeder.

4. A sewing machine in accordance with claim 2, in which said rocker is pivotally connected at its middle point to the frame of the machine and the end of said lever is movable through a cam along the rocker on both sides of the pivot so that the lateral displacements of the feeder can be varied as to extent and direction.

5. A sewing machine in accordance with claim 2, in which the end of the lever connected to said rocker is movable through :a cam along the rocker to regulate the width of the rocker oscillations and consequently the extent of the lateral shifting of the feeder, said rocker is pivotally connected at its middle point to the frame of the machine and the end of said lever is movable through a second cam along the rocker on both sides of the pivot so that the lateral displacements of the feeder can be varied as to extent and direction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. IN A SEWING MACHINE OF THE TYPE INCLUDING A FRAME SUPPORTING DRIVING MEANS AND A BED PLATE CARRYING A SLOTTED NEEDLE PLATE, A RECIPROCATING NEEDLE DRIVEN BY SAID MEANS, A FABRIC FEEDER HAVING TEETH ROWS MOVABLE IN THE SLOTTED NEEDLE PLATE, AND TWO OPERATING MECHANISM CONNECTING SAID FABRIC FEEDER TO THE DRIVING MEANS OF THE MACHINE, A FIRST OF SAID OPERATING MECHANISM BEING OF A CONSTRUCTION TO DISPLACE THE FEEDER ALONG A LONGITUDINAL TRAJECTORY WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR AND CONSISTING OF A RAISING PHASE ABOVE THE NEEDLE PLATE, OF A DISPLACEMENT ACTIVE PHASE IN ONE DIRECTION, OF A SINKING PHASE BENEATH THE NEEDLE PLATE AND OF A PASSIVE DISPLACEMENT PHASE IN OPPOSITE SENSE TO THE PREVIOUS ONE, A SECOND OF SAID OPERATING MECHANISMS BEING OF A CONSTRUCTION TO EFFECTUATE A LATERAL DISPLACEMENT OF THE FEEDER IN ONE DIRECTION AT THE SAME TIME AS SAID ACTIVE DISPLACEMENT AND ANOTHER AND OPPOSITE LATERAL DISPLACEMENT IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION DURING THE PASSIVE DISPLACEMENT, SO THAT THE FEEDER RETURNS TO ITS STARTING POSITION TO REPEAT THE SAME TRAJECTORIES, THECOMBINATION OF SAID OPERATING MECHANISMS PROVIDING FOR THE FEEDING OF FABRIC IN ANY PRE-FIXED DIRECTION ALONG THE BED PLATE AS A CONSEQUENCE OF THE SIMULTANEOUS LATERAL AND LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENTS, INDEPENDENT CONTROL MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID OPERATING MECHANISMS IN ORDER TO VARY THE AMPLITUDE FROM ZERO TO A MAXIMUM AS WELL AS THE DIRECTION OF EACH ONE OF THE LATERAL AND LONGITUDINAL DISPLACEMENTS OF THE FEEDER FROM A CENTER POSITION. 